Federal Delicatessen restaurant review: Metro Top 50 2018

Federal Delicatessen restaurant review

This is a Kiwi take on a New York deli but despite being inspired by a style of food and service from the other side of the world, it’s never felt out of place. The “Fed” manages to stay on the right side of the line between great and gimmicky because the entire experience is more affecting than the sum of its parts and because, it turns out, high-quality New Zealand produce lends itself to being served in this way – casually, without fuss or pretence, with a focus on solid flavours. The menu doesn’t change often because that’s not the point: you’ll go back again and again, not for what’s new but for dishes that are comforting, familiar and well executed. What elevates the dining experience at the Fed is the level of service, the quality and flavour of those local ingredients, and the fact that everything just tastes really, really good.